Arthur Sterling

Arthur MacLean Sterling passed away peacefully at home on November 4, 2022. He was born and raised in Montana and those memories remained strong throughout his life. Art earned his undergraduate degree from Gonzaga University, where he met his loving wife, Donna. He obtained his PhD in Chemical Engineering at the University of Washington in Seattle. He then received a National Institute of Health Fellowship for three years of research at the University of Washington Medical School. He spent the next three years doing research at Leiden University Academic Hospital in the Netherlands where he immersed himself in the Dutch way of life. He relished the markets, flowers, biking to work, and the pleasant "gezellig" nature of the people he met who became lifelong friends. This experience remained one of the highlights of his life. He returned to the United States in 1975 where he had a 28-year tenure as a member of the LSU Chemical Engineering faculty. He also served as Associate Dean of Engineering and was Chair of the Chemical Engineering Department. Art filled his life with people and things he loved. He was passionate about education, travel, and sharing good food with family and friends. His work and interests took him around the globe, and he never stopped learning and trying new things. He was an avid photographer, reader, and master of the latest technology. He enjoyed playing tennis with the many friends he made over the years at the Aquatic Club and Bocage Racquet Club in Baton Rouge. Art had an encyclopedic mind that had an entire section dedicated to things that would make others smile. It didn't matter what the subject was, he would have a joke or a story to suit the moment. Art made everyone laugh, even in the toughest times. Art remembered every meal and every recipe he ever tried. His kitchen was his laboratory and the place where he generously shared his love, as anyone who was lucky enough to eat at his table could attest. Dr. Arthur Sterling was preceded in death by his parents, George and June Sterling of Ronan Montana, and his sister Sandra Wilson of Spokane, Washington. His survivors include his beloved wife of sixty-one years, Donna Sterling; his son Patrick (Ellen) of Louisville, KY; his daughter Michelle (Craig) of Paradise Valley, AZ; his daughter Kari (David) of Minneapolis, MN, and his son Jeroen (Kim) of Portland, OR; his grandchildren Victoria (Albert "Buddy") Henricks, Natalie (John Michael) Griffith, Grace Sterling, Benjamin Brauer, Ella Brauer; his great-grandchildren Michael, Chase and Cecile Henricks, and the newest arrival, born on the same day as his passing, Anna Griffith. We like to imagine the joy they felt, winking at each other while celebrating the circle of life. We will be raising our hearts and glasses to him in a celebration of life that will take place at Bocage Racquet Club on November 16th from 1:00 to 3:30 p.m. Art will be laid to rest in Montana alongside his parents in early summer.